UBS Group Boosts Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Price Target to $94.00

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its target price increased by research analysts at UBS Group from $70.00 to $94.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. UBS Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 4.28% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Brinker International from $69.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Brinker International from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $69.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. KeyCorp raised Brinker International from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $72.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Argus lowered shares of Brinker International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.09.

Brinker International Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Brinker International stock traded down $0.62 on Thursday, reaching $90.14. 426,909 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,443,557. The company has a current ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.96. Brinker International has a fifty-two week low of $31.95 and a fifty-two week high of $91.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 2.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $74.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.04.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 14th. The restaurant operator reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.04). Brinker International had a negative return on equity of 274.62% and a net margin of 3.52%. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.39 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Brinker International will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EAT. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Brinker International by 2.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,535,500 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $275,004,000 after acquiring an additional 135,580 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 231.8% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,583,239 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $78,602,000 after buying an additional 1,106,046 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in Brinker International by 13,850.1% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,057,416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $76,546,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049,836 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 31.7% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 942,510 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $68,228,000 after buying an additional 227,047 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 15.9% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 295,700 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $21,406,000 after purchasing an additional 40,500 shares in the last quarter.

Brinker International Company Profile

Brinker International, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the ownership, development, operation, and franchising of casual dining restaurants in the United States and internationally. It operates and franchises Chili's Grill & Bar and Maggiano's Little Italy restaurant brands.